The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1887-10-19

O. st,t aa'' Felow-citizens, | have no desire to
tsfe one single laurel that worthily adorns
en- ssH NICHOLS brow. l have heretofore given
hin al my best praise and en- not here to
frnly and well, and he had to eounsel with him
end to aid him Legislature composed OF as
true,
CRAVE AND PATRIOTIC MEN
as ever stood by the side of any leader or ever
followed and advocated any cause: and say
Ia The credit of Gen. Nichols, and many OF
bis supporters have forgotten it now who
should remember, shat Gen. Nichols never
took any prominent step nor entered upon
any important measure without going to
that Legislature and consulting with them
and seeking. their ADVICE in caucus. i give
him all credit and all honor for it, but OBJ
ject to all credit and all honor being taken
from the meH-the Representatives who were
sent from all portions OF this State to uphold
Gen. Nichols armF and 10 aid him in any
plan to secure the redemption OF his State. I
do not care 70 90 into particulars.
The question OF the capture of the court
house has been debated ard & certain distin-
gI,ishci gentleman in this State gracefully
abnegatinE for himself all claims, stated-as
believe he did truly-that
TIE CAPTURE OF THE COURTHOUSE
was effected against his advice and protest
and undertook t. say that Gen. Nichols APP
peaIed before the Democratic caucus and
look the advice of the Democratic caucus
whether he would install himself in the court
house or III st. Patrick's Hall, and that the
caucus declined to advise him, but COM
mitted the matter to his discretion.
[ see my distinguished friend in front
Senator B0atnerl shakes his head, and any
other member of the Louisiana Legislature
of 1876 will also shake hiH head, because |
state, ~ fact, thst Coy. Nichols came be-
fore the caucus to submit this weighty ques-
ton. He failed to state his own views. He
id hat tharn tuff,a IN tI,S
and that ii was one too Important and too
Teighty for him to pass upon without delib-
Grafton and without consultation with the
peoples representatives.. lie said that one
proposition was to install his court in the
courthouse III charge of the records and
papers and the authority of that court, even
ii It involved contest WITH the United States
troops. The other was to have prO-JO3'Hla
court--a paper court, and to install 1t in one
OF the rooms of the hall which we occupied
as a temporary State House, and ! assert,
and believe, that nine-tenths, aye, ninety
nine onc-hundredths OF the members Of
that
LEGISLATIVE CAUCUS Will BEAR ME OUT
in what say, that the Legislative caucus de-
termined and advised him that it was his
duty to install the court in the courthouse on
Jackson Square, no matter what might be
the consequences, and advised him that
they considered tin It on that measure de-
pended the success of his government. and
Gen. Nichols bowed gracefully to the de-
cision of the caucus. and pnt 1T into execu-
ton truly and well the next day.
Now, felow-citiZens, 1t is wrong that these
claims should be made; it . wrong that such
statements should be made, and 1t Is wrong
that these attempts should be made to con.
vince the. people that credit alone is due tc
Gov. Nichols; that ali the patriotism in the
Gov. Nichols CLONE is to be attributed the
successful establishment of our rights, the
regaining of our liberties IN 1877. l was
present at the convention which nominated
other gentlemen within the hearing of my
voice. Gov. Nichols was not candidate
when that convention was first assembled.
was supporting John McEnery. Louis A.
Witt was candidate, and had the support
of nearly the eatire delegation from Or
Louisiana. Gen. Andrew s. Heron was
candidate and had the support of
the Florida Parishes. Only a day
before the meeting Of the convention Gen.
conventions. You know the history He was
nominated; he received the support of the
Red River Valley: he received the support of
South Louisiana; he received eventually the
support of John McEnery's parishes when
his name was withdrawn: he wasnominated:
he went before the people, and You all re-
member the contest. Ion all remember with
what artlor we went into it. You all remem-
Der with what enthusiasm it was prosecuted
and you all remember that it was the
MOST STIRRING CANVASS EVER HELD
in the State OF Louisiana. 1t resulted how ?
In the State being carried for Gov. Nichols
by. a little more than 5000 votes. And where
did that 5000 majority come from? They
came from the parishes of Ouachlta and
Morehouse, which had voted for John Nc
Emery. They came from III parishes of East
and West Feliciana, and East Baton Rouge,
Id
and the parishes of the Red River Valley and
South Louisiana went overwhelmingly for
Packard. We were succeeded by the votes
of what are called the ''bulldoZlng" parishes
and our quorum i'll the, Legislature was inn
perilled If not almost lost. Caddo had no
representatives, although she had in 1874.
Rapides had no representatives there, al
though she had in 1874. Assumption, Gov.
Nichols, parish, went largely Republican.
Lafourche went Republican. We were
the parishes Of the y Third '' and
Fourth Congressional Districts for causes
which l will not inquire into now.
because of advice given by somebody. l
cannot say who: but 1T would have been easy
for the Democrats in the parishes of Red
river to have carried their section again as
they carried it in 1874, and to have given
us Democratic Legislature by such ma jor-
lty that we would not have had to work for u
quorum as we had to work afterward in order
have been easy if they had not followed adj
vice which / believe was rendered to the
Democracy of the parishes OF Ouachita and
Morehouse, and the parishes OF East and
West Feliclana and Baton Rouge, and which
they did not follow Because they did not
follow it, Nichols was triumphantly elected.
Bnt we had no quorum i'll the Legislature
no acknowledged quorum.
Ali our troubles came afterward from the
want of q quorum. Why, fellow-eitizens,
the other day read in q paper the speeches
of two OF our orators who are canvassing the
Red River Valley q forget which one par.
ticularly). in speaking OF the Legislature of
1876 and the Nichols government said that
when
JOHN N'ENERY WAS ELECTED IN 1879
he had great deal stronger case than
Nichols, and it would have been just as easy
to have installed our government then as it
was to install the Nichols government IN
1877, casting the inference, although he
did not say so, that John MeEnery did moi
attempt to do what Francis 7. Nichols ac-
complished subsequently and successfully.
=, Fellow citizens, John McEnery is not in
this canvass; he is not in politics; but he
still lives and suppose that his meT DRY still
survives in this parish where he lived SO
long. and i'll Democratic North Louisiana in
whose affairs he took so important port.
When John McEnery was elected Governor,
he was elected at the same time that Grant
was elected President by on overwhelming
majority Of the American people. At the
time he was elected the House of Represen-
tatiyes and the Senate were both overwhelm-
ingly Republican. At the time he was elected
we had no, quorum acknowledged by both
returning boards of either body and we
had no Senate even If the returning board.
had returned our members elected, although
WE PURCHASED FEW SENATORS
surviving from the Warmoth Legislature OF
the yesr preceding. With these purchased
Senators and with the members we lad, we
had no acknowledged quorum, but we had
carried the State. We had elected a Legisl...
ture, but we were met with an injunction
from the United States court which forbade
us TO assemble, which forbade members who
were. elected to take their seats. That in
authorities. and nd WAS ' supported bv Feiers
arms. The army of the United States was
placed at the disposal of MIR. Kellogg. When
We appealed to the President, who had jnst
come ln5o Office with an undoubted title and
Tlth,the sanction of popular will, we were
told thatif we sent 200, 900 of our best
1Hs l.